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Serial Killers

Profit Killer: Dorothea Puente

Serial Killers

Spotify Studios

True Crime, History, Education

4.630.3K Ratings

🗓️ 15 September 2025

⏱️ 37 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

She dressed like a grandmother, lied about her age, and acted like a guardian angel… while secretly killing the very people she claimed to help. At her Sacramento boarding house, Dorothea Puente took in elderly, sick and disabled tenants. But once their social security checks arrived, she killed them, then spent all their money. Keep up with us on Instagram @serialkillerspodcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

As children, we all hear, what do you want to be when you grow up?

0:09.0

Once we get older, we realize what they're actually asking is, how will you make money?

0:14.0

While some people do become firemen and astronauts as adults, others pursue alternative money-making schemes, like murder. They become the final type

0:23.3

of killer in our series, those who kill for money. Criminalologists duo Ronald Holmes and

0:29.5

Stephen Holmes call them hedonistic comfort killers because they desire creature comforts. Others

0:34.9

call them profit killers or game killers. Whatever you call them,

0:38.8

the crime is a means to an end. Their victim, nothing more than a paycheck. Or in the case of

0:44.6

today's killer, a social security check. She took in borders to get their payments mailed to her

0:50.1

address, then kept cashing them long after her victims were buried.

0:56.6

Welcome to Serial Killers, a Spotify podcast. Every Monday, we bring you the true crime stories

1:02.0

that stand out. I'm Janice Morgan. We'd love to hear from you. Follow us on Instagram at

1:07.0

Serial Killers podcast and share your thoughts on this week's episode or if you're listening

1:11.6

on the Spotify app

1:12.5

swipe up and leave a comment

1:14.0

and today you might want to listen

1:16.0

to the very end

1:16.9

for an update about the show.

1:19.7

This episode includes

1:21.0

discussions of murder,

1:22.3

violence and mutilation.

1:24.1

Consider this when

1:24.8

deciding how and when

...

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